Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[Goose and Fig]

Great pics everyone! Its nice to see some wheatens that aren't exploding for a change

 

[The Lisser]

I have been a thread lurker for a while

. I love ameraucanas and this summer purchased several chicks from my neighbor. I was wondering if someone could tell me the quality of this blue cockerel "Grover."

Thanks!

 

[nicalandia]

Quote:
he seems to be showing "Rustiness" thru the blue. what does this mean? well seems he is a "Blue" bird based on Gold, seems like the best blues are based on Silver, been silver will clean the "Rustiness"..

 

[The Lisser]

Quote:
he seems to be showing "Rustiness" thru the blue. what does this mean? well seems he is a "Blue" bird based on Gold, seems like the best blues are based on Silver, been silver will clean the "Rustiness"..

.
Thank you for your reply. I think the rustiness may be due to the photograph - there was some reflected light. Here's another photo of him.

 

[Goose and Fig]

Quote:
he seems to be showing "Rustiness" thru the blue. what does this mean? well seems he is a "Blue" bird based on Gold, seems like the best blues are based on Silver, been silver will clean the "Rustiness"..

.
Thank you for your reply. I think the rustiness may be due to the photograph - there was some reflected light. Here's another photo of him.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/52617_dscf6278_copy.jpg

He looks pretty good. The goldish tint may just be end-of-summer blue. It shoudl moult out- he doesn't appear to have leakage or anything. What color girls did you get? BBS are usually a nice investment as far as egg color goes.

 

[AinaWGSD]

Hello

I am finally posting to this thread because a) I picked up a pair of Ameraucanas at last weekend's Crossroads show and b) how the heck is a thread this big so hard for me to find every time I try to look for it?!

Anyway, we went with the intention of just getting a couple of pullets. My husband really wanted a blue egg layer, so we were really looking for Ameraucanas (especially since after seeing some on the show floor he decided he doesn't like the look of rumpless Araucanas). After having a hard time finding just pullets for sale, he started thinking maybe it would be a good idea to get a roo. He's hoping that a rooster will keep the neighborhood hawk from taking any of our girls and also hoping for chicks next spring. So we came home with a black pullet, and a blue cockerel.

The pullet, dubbed Lucille shortly after we bought her. She's a little on the flighty side, but once you get her caught up she's very calm. And her beard is so fluffy!

The cockerel, who we named Basil last night (I wanted to call him Amos and DH wanted to call him Kiev, we both agreed on Basil right away when I suggested it). He's fairly mellow, although the second night we had him he did manage to escape while DH was taking pictures of the new chickens and flew right up and over my shoulder when I thought I had him cornered in the neighbor's backyard.

I'm hoping that Basil is a quietish rooster and the neighbors don't complain. Roosters are legal in our town, although you do have to follow local noise ordinances. The guy we bought him from was telling a lady that bought some birds right before us that Ameraucanas have a fairly quiet crow. Any thoughts on the truth of this statement? I'm not sure how much I believe that, but thinking back I don't think I really saw any of the Ameraucana roosters at the show crowing.

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Quote:
As crows go, my Ameraucanas are on the quiet side. However, their competition are BIG, loud, Marans boys so it may all be relative!

Welcome to the wonderful world of Ameraucanas!!

 

[Reyvaughn]

Quote:
$100 is nothing! I spent $96 on a batch of eggs to have only one chick hatch, which the cat ate!

$20 each bird isn't bad...really. You have yourself an almost mature flock that you can eventually breed. I say you are ahead of the game.

Have I meantioned I work in a low paying job and that $100 represents over 10 hours of work? I don't make $96 a DAY so spending that much on one batch of eggs is out of my league.

So far I have been very lucky with hatches. *knock, knock on wood* The eggs I have set right now are mystery eggs. I don't even know if they are fertile, but they are home grown, so no money has been spent, if they don't hatch.

Someone commented that they would be glad to get their chickens for $20 each. I think they missed the part where I got all these as CHICKS...some only 1 week old....so I don't feel like I got a bargin....I got what I paid for, assuming they EVER lay. I have been feeding them, waterering them and cleaning up after them for 6 months so far...oh, and I have over $50 in medication cuz they were not overly healthy when I got them.

I am with you Cass. We don't make $90 a day either. I have $120 into buying 7 birds - not including the $140 in gas to drive and pick them up. I was expecting to at least get some of my money returned in month or two - I thought I set the bar low. Well, I didn't know this was limbo, because my bar was still to high. I have gotten 2 eggs out of 6 hens/pullets in a month. One never hatched, the other one I check ed for a bullseye and ate it. Pretty expensive breakfast that morning - it didn't taste any different than the eggs laid by my TSC purchased $2.50/ea pullet's egg. It was a bit hard to swallow, though.

I like my Ameraucanas, but I think I picked the wrong breed. I should have stuck with Cochins and Orps.

 

[Cass]

Quote:
My Ameruacana boys (all 3 of them) are quieter than my OE and some other breed roos. One of the black ones I call "squeeky" cuz he's crow isn't complete; Just the " cock a do " part comes out and kinda raspy. Given my experience I don't think you have been fed a line about their voice. Buy the neighbors off with eggs once in a while and they won't complain as much....many people think you have to have a roo to have eggs....so you can let them think what they want when you had over a 1/2 dozen eggs once or twice a month.

 

[Muggsmagee]

Quote:
Dang!!! That's some seriously expensive cat food!!!!

Sorry about the chick though. What were those eggs/chick???

Silkies!